Which is to say that consumer prices rose about 7. 6 times over the period in which wages fell short of doubling for men and short of tripling (from a much lower base, obviously) for women.

No, the numbers do not show that. However, this does show that Tom does not know what “constant 2004 dollars” means. If he had ever looked that up he might understand that it means the numbers are adjusted for inflation, i.e. rising consumer prices.

The numbers demonstrate, in fact, the exact opposite of what this ignoramus claims. It really makes me wonder if any of the editors over there know what constant dollars means. Any person familiar with the term couldn’t have missed a mistake this egregious.

UPDATE: Tom was informed of his mistake in the comment section and has since retracted his thesis. Click the link above to see his gracious update.

Reminds me of a grim joke a carrier pilot once told me: when you have a busted take-off because of some item you skipped on your checklist, it’s not the fall that kills you, nor the impact on the water.